Advice on pet

[LoveTrains]

Feb 1, 2013 17:57:27 GMT -5 midwest07 said:

I just wanted to echo the comments about $400 sounding very high. When we get our dogs teeth cleaned, I think the most we ever paid was around $200, and that included some sort of fancy fluids being given to her so she would "wake up more rested" or something. ha. I would guess it's much quicker to put the rabbit out, clip its teeth and be done, than it is to clean a dog's teeth. I would seek out another vet for another opinion and cost estimate, plus see if you can learn to do it yourself at home.

$200 is very inexpensive for a dental for a dog. My dog is getting a dental next week and the estimate is $450. 

[wrathofkuus]

Jwritergirl comments on a lot of things based on severely limited information and a weird perspective.

[imojoebunny]

This is hard. I had a house bunny for 13 years. He was provided with a selection of baskets ( he had preferences and would not touch some kinds) and hay to chew, Blue berry bush limbs or apple tree limbs, and got fresh greens everyday. He never had any teeth problems.

If it is not related to not chewing enough, I would look for a different vet, who is lower cost first. They vary widely. I got my bunny neutered for $85 vs $200+ quoted from the rabbit specialist. I am also kind of surprised they are willing to put you bun under so often.

Hope you can find something to make it work. I miss my Joe Bunny. Bunnies are awesome pets for adults.

[fussybear]

Feb 1, 2013 22:06:40 GMT -5 imojoebunny said:

This is hard. I had a house bunny for 13 years. He was provided with a selection of baskets ( he had preferences and would not touch some kinds) and hay to chew, Blue berry bush limbs or apple tree limbs, and got fresh greens everyday. He never had any teeth problems.

If it is not related to not chewing enough, I would look for a different vet, who is lower cost first. They vary widely. I got my bunny neutered for $85 vs $200+ quoted from the rabbit specialist. I am also kind of surprised they are willing to put you bun under so often.

Hope you can find something to make it work. I miss my Joe Bunny. Bunnies are awesome pets for adults.

It is related to chewing, or rather, not chewing. I've gotten him lots of different things to chew, though I'm not sure if its getting the molars, which are the culprit. Apparently many rabbits do not have this problem, but this one does.

I guess I'm just worried if I were to change vets and the new vet changed the treatment plan, would he constantly be in more pain if he didnt get the trimmings? Would the eventual infections kill him? Ugh, pets are hard.

The current vet says that since the anesthesia is gas, that it leaves his system quickly and had no lasting effects. He does bounce back very quickly, even in his old age.

[pistolshrimp]

I think I would look into getting another vet's opinion on this.

It sounds to me like your bunny may have maloccluded molars where they do not align properly and can't naturally wear down through eating and chewing. Malocclusions are pretty common in the incisors of rodents and are pretty easy to clip and maintain. Molars are a different story. They can be removed (and often are in cases like this - which is why I would get a second opinion) and the rabbit put on a soft food diet - often just wetting down regualar pelleted food.

[ellipses84]

We were facing an expensive emergency procedure with our 15 year old cat. Healthwise, she seems a lot younger so the vet was really pushing us to do it. We had to tell them we could not afford it and kind of had to push them to give us an alternate, cheaper solution. The vet wouldn't guarantee 100% success with the cheaper option, but it did work and our cat is completely better. Call around and get some quotes and have a talk with your vet, or even try out a different vet the next time.